10/12/16

Samsung will release a new line of wall ovens, cooktops and range hoods in November that include Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and compatibility with the SmartThings Hub.

Samsung will add a line of Wi-Fi and Bluetooth-enabled wall ovens, cooktops and range hoods to its growing portfolio of smart large appliances, the Korean company announced today. These appliances, which will be available beginning in November, will also work with the brand's SmartThings Hub, which brings app-enabled security cameras, plugs and other smart-home gadgets together within a single platform. Prices will range from $1,100 for the cooktops and range hood to $4,000 for the double wall oven.

Manufacturers have spent the past couple of years throwing connectivity into ovens and refrigerators and creating apps that let you connect (with varying degrees of success) to your large kitchen appliance from your phone or tablet. Samsung has adopted a showy approach when it comes to its connected kitchen appliances, especially when you consider its showpiece, the $5,600 Family Hub Refrigerator, which includes a 21.5-inch touchscreen, built-in cameras and its own set of fridge apps. The company also added Wi-Fi to its popular Flex Duo range, an appliance that lets you create a makeshift double-oven in one cavity thanks to a divider that creates two separate cooking environments. The Wi-Fi connects to an app where you can start your oven remotely, monitor cooking with a built-in temperature probe or check to see if any cooktop burners are in use.

With the connectivity in place, companies are slowly making their appliances work with smart home devices outside of the kitchen, such as GE's recently announced cooperation with Amazon's Alexa voice-controlled digital assistant or the Jenn-Air wall oven that works with the Nest Learning Thermostat. With the connection to SmartThings, these Samsung cooktops and wall ovens might gain an edge over appliances that don't work with other platforms or brands.

Still, there are still plenty of kinks that Samsung has to work out with SmartThings, especially for households that go all in with a variety of SmartThings-connected devices. It's also worth mentioning that, in May of this year, Samsung released the Family Hub Refrigerator without SmartThings support, just months after showing it off at CES with its own, dedicated SmartThings fridge app. Even now, that app is still nowhere to be seen.

Samsung's new connected appliances include built-in double and single wall ovens; gas, induction and electric cooktops, and a range hood. The wall ovens have the same connected features as the Wi-Fi range, including an oven cavity that can be split in two with the Flex Duo divider (which, if you have a double oven setup, creates three different ovens). The range hood will use Bluetooth to sync with the new cooktops, so the hood's fans and lights will automatically turn on when you're cooking. This is a feature we've seen work well on GE's Chef Connect freestanding ranges and its over-the-range microwaves.